Nextgen Focus: Ubisoft’s roster

A new generation of consoles have arrived and along with it a new line up of games. 2014 has had a slow start but big time AAA developers are currently busy developing their own lineup of AAA titles set to be launched towards the end of this year. EA, Ubisoft and Bethesda sure seem to be very busy lately promoting their upcoming titles. Let us now take a look at some of Ubisoft’s titles set to launch either towards the end of this year or in 2015

Tom Clancy’s The Division

Tom Clancy’s The Division Ubisoft’s all new open world online RPG shooter that’s set in a futuristic pandemic hit New York. Players assume control of well-trained agents who are part of the special team referred to as “The Division” and whose sole aim is to restore order and hunt down the insurgents responsible for pandemic outbreak. Running in the all new Snowdrop engine, The Division is truly a glorious nextgen experience. The richly detailed and near photorealistic environments and stunning lighting effects are entirely of a whole new level. The massive metropolis of New York offers a huge as well as a dangerous world for the players to tread upon as they fight the insurgents. A variety of futuristic gadgets aid you in making tactical decisions when confronting your foes whether they are AI or other players. Launching on PS4, Xbox One and PC, The Division will probably be launched in 2015.

Assassin’s Creed Unity

The Assassin’s Creed series has been running for quite a long time. From the crusades to Renaissance Europe to Revolutionary-era America to Caribbean, the series has taken players on one hell of a historical journey. But lately the series has also been dragged to extent that players even compare it to the Call of Duty series. Assassin’s Creed 3 was utterly dull and although Assassin’s Creed 4 was a terrific pirate game,it turned out to be a weak Assassin’s Creed game with the free-running feeling somewhat dull and the extremely repetitive missions that lacked variety. Inspite of this, Ubisoft truly believes that there is a good reason for fans of the series to forget the shortcomings of their previous games and really look forward to this one. Ubisoft claims that ACU will be the best series entry since the first game. The game will have all new parkour and combat mechanics. And unlike AC4, ACU will most definitely a nextgen exclusive meaning that gamers who still play on their PS3s and Xbox 360s might want to consider buying the new consoles. Set in the revolutionary-era Paris, the game focuses on a new protagonist named Arno, an assassin quite like his predecessor, equipped with a phantom blade and other sneaky weapons, who fights the Templars who ever eager to control the world. The nextgen exclusivity was probably done keeping high visual fidelity in mind. Just like The Division, ACU is technically impressive and will probably require a high end PC just to render the massive crowds. The game also has a strong focus on co-op although you can still play solo. As in the previous games, ACU has a lot to do with stealthy assassinations and intense combat. A newly added stealth mode ensures that your assassin will no longer stick out like a sore thumb in place where he’s supposed to be hiding from plain sight. All in all the gameplay did look kinda fun and even the co-op seemed to be an excellent new feature. Whether it’ll be the same game all over or not one can truly know that when the game launches this year on the 28th of October.

Far Cry 4

“Did I ever tell what the definition of insanity is?”, ahh that monologue just never gets old. Far Cry 3 was an amazing game due to a lot of reasons, one of them being the game’s psychotic secondary antagonist, Vaas Montenegro. And as such Ubisoft has decided that the next Far Cry game should have a crazy villain of its own. And yes he’s the creepy guy with that awful haircut, sitting on a disfigured statue, making an example of some poor guy who thought of messing around with him. To be more specific, he is cruel dictator going by the name Pagan Min,who rules over the fictional nation of Kyrat,set in the himalayas. You play as Ajay Ghale, who returns from the US in order to meet his dying mother and fulfill her dying wishes but instead runs into Pagan Min and gets caught in the middle of a civil war. Like the earlier Far Cry games, each game has its own storyline and setting and has no connection whatsoever to the other games. However, the game seems to be the only thing that connects each game. Far Cry 4 is an open world First Person shooter like its predecessors. It includes a lot of basic mechanics from Far Cry 2 and Far Cry 3 but there are also plenty of neat additions like new means of transportation including auto rickshaws, gyrocopters and elephants. The game also introduces grappling hooks to maneuver around the rough mountain terrain. The wingsuit is also making a comeback FC4 among several other features. New and improved mechanics like shooting while driving (yes you don’t have to frequently shift between the steering wheel and the turret), vehicular takedowns and the ability to kick while pressing the melee button while looking down. You now have a automatic crossbow replacing the recurve bow from FC3, which isn’t only stealthy but also very fast. Kyrat is just as big as the Rook Islands from FC3 but Ubisoft promises that there is a lot to do including taking enemy outposts, exploring lost temples and hunting rare animals (PETA isn’t going to be very happy about the last bit). The game also boasts an innovative co-operative mode that lets you play even with people who don’t own a copy of the game! Currently not much has been told regarding this new feature although there is a speculation that it’ll be confined to either of the consoles. As for the graphics, it runs on an updated version of the very same engine which was used to create Far Cry 3 but all in all the FC4 does seem to have a lot of graphical improvements when compared to its predecessor. The title will launch this year on the 18th of November on the PS4, Xbox One, PC as well as PS3 and Xbox 360. Meanwhile checkout this trailer featuring the game’s crazy villain.

Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six: Siege

Rainbow Six: Siege is the next installment in the long running tactical FPS series.Ubisoft had earlier teased a game going by the name “Rainbow Six:Patriots”. But we now know that Rainbow Six:Patriots has been scrapped and Ubisoft had decided to start development from scratch to launch a technically proficient game for the nextgen consoles and in the end came up with a new title that we now know as Rainbow Six: Siege. Not everything regarding Siege has been unveiled apart from its splendid multiplayer mode referred to as Siege mode. In Siege mode players can assume the role of either the Rogue Spear team (the terrorists) or the Raven team (the counter-terrorists). The Rogue Spear squad’s objective is to defend their position by erecting barricades and booby traps and also ensuring that their opponents won’t reach the hostages. The Raven squad’s job is to infiltrate the residence held by the Rogue Spear squad and to locate and rescue hostages with the help of sneaky drones. Players of both teams must utilize clever tactics to emerge successful or to save their skins. A single player component has been mentioned but still remains shrouded in mystery. More details are expected to show up by 2015.

The Crew

The Crew is Ubisoft’s all new ambitious Open World Street Racing title set to launch for the nextgen consoles. An MMO at its core, Ubisoft promises that you’ll never have to race alone in the game. The game also has several RPG elements that let you collect parts and upgrade or customize your vehicle. Set in the United States of America, the game boasts a really huge world to ride around including some famous landmarks and cities. There is also a story component involving an undercover cop sent to gather intel regarding a dangerous gang. The game shall launch this year on the 11th of November on the nextgen consoles as well as PC.

So what do you think of Ubisoft’s lineup for nextgen? Will it be a disappointment quite like Watch Dogs or will Ubisoft truly make their mark in the gaming industry? Stay tuned for more updates.